An assay instrument performs assays on fluid sample material. For example, in the clinical laboratory context, the analyzer system can be configured to perform multi-step analytical processes (for example, a nucleic acid test (NAT) designed to detect microbe, such as a virus or a bacterium) that involve adding substances (e.g., fluids), such as samples, solid supports, buffers, oil, primers, polymerases, nucleotides, labels, probes, or other reaction fluids, to and/or removing substances from receptacles, agitating receptacles to mix the contents thereof, maintaining and/or altering the temperature of the contents of the receptacles, heating or chilling the contents of the receptacles, altering the concentration of one or more content components of the receptacles, separating or isolating constituent components of the contents of the receptacles, detecting an electromagnetic signal emission (e.g., light) from the contents of the receptacles, deactivating or halting an on-going reaction, or any combination of two or more of such processes.
The assay instrument can be automated to perform the desired analytical process. In such applications, positively matching results of the analytical process to particular sample is needed. To do this, the assay instrument needs to know the locations of sample containers placed onto the instrument. It is also desirable to perform similar tracking of reagents and consumables used to generate results. This disclosure discusses a method to track samples, reagents, and consumables using a hand held or automatic image based barcode reader or similar imaging system. In a typical method of sample tracking, sample containers are labeled with a machine-readable label, e.g., a barcode. The sample container is placed into a holder or rack on an instrument and the instrument either automatically moves the container or monitors the location of a manually moved container. The instrument or operator moves the samples to a location where a built-in barcode reader reads the label on the sample container. The instrument “knows” the location of the sample because the instrument actively moved or monitored the position of a particular sample. The instrument can associate a sample in a particular location or slot in a holder with its barcode and now all processing of the particular sample can be positively tracked to that sample's barcode.
Actuators to move samples in front of an on-board barcode reader or mechanisms to allow the operator to move the samples to the reader while the instrument monitors position can add cost and size to an implementation of an instrument and can have possible negative affects on the reliability of the instrument. The method discussed in this disclosure shows an alternative where a hand-held barcode reader and a specially labeled rack or labeled positions in the instrument allow positive association of a sample with a position in a rack or positive association of a reagent or other consumable with a position in an instrument.